Chromosome-level genome assembly of Manglietia pachyphylla

Manglietia pachyphylla, an endangered evergreen tree within the Magnoliaceae family, is renowned for its exceptional ornamental value in landscape horticulture. Despite its classification as a Category II nationally protected plant species in China, the genetic basis of its adaptive traits and conservation priorities remains poorly understood. To address this, we present the first chromosome-scale genome assembly of M. pachyphylla utilizing an integrated approach combining PacBio HiFi long-read and Hi-C chromosome conformation capture sequencing technologies. The assembled genome spans 2.15 Gb (contig N50 = 43.57 Mb), exhibiting a heterozygosity rate of 0.78% and repeat content of 78.64%, predominantly comprising long terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposons (52.86%). Hi-C scaffolding anchored 99.57% of the assembly to 19 pseudochromosomes, achieving a BUSCO completeness score of 96.4%. Annotation revealed 42,505 putative protein-coding genes, with 84.46% of predicted genes were functionally annotated. Phylogenomic analysis positioned M. pachyphylla and Oyama sieboldii clustered together in a well-supported group. This high-contiguity genome assembly enables future investigations into adaptive evolution, functional genomics, and evidence-based conservation strategies for this endangered species.